YHH first saw Brock Faber as a first year Squirt in the Velocity 3 v 3 tournament. His vision, speed and hands immediately made us assume he was a second year Squirt headed into the season. Last year he had a great campaign, scoring many big goals in big games. To cap off his season as a "first year" he was named the 2013 YHH Squirtacular MVP. When told later that he had another year of Squirts, we knew that OMG and Brock were destined for a great season. Going undefeated, winning Brooklyn Park, the YHH Squirtacular, Moose Goheen, and Fargo...Faber and his buddies have had a great season. 

In addition to being a great student at Basswood Elementary, Faber starred for the OMG Storm baseball team that won the 10AAA State Baseball tournament. What sets Faber apart from the many great players in Minnesota is his attitude at the rink. Coach Erik Kukkonen said of Faber, "Brock is one of the easiest kids I've ever had the chance to coach...he's done everything our coaches have asked of him and more. He really embraced his role as a team leader this season. Watching Brock grow up in front of my eyes was a blast."

In additon to Hockey and Baseball, Brock plays Football and enjoys Golfing and fishing with his dad Jay. 

When evaluating nominations, one of the most impressive kids we came across was Charlie Lindberg. Despite not being one of his team's bigger players, he has always made big plays every time we see him play. In December of 2012, Edina White played Edina Green...in the first period I remember asking an Edina parent who this "Lindberg kid" was. He had a great motor and every time he hit the ice, he played like it was his last shift ever. Since then, YHH has seen Charlie play a number of association and non-association games.  His presence on the ice is always felt, he posesses great speed and hands for the Hornets. This Winter, Linberg was named to the YHH Squirtacular All Tournament Team, a team with a very select group of top players from all over Minnesota.

Charlie plays a large role in his multi-age school this year at Highlands Elementary.  Charlie's teacher said this of Charlie, "Charlie is brilliant and is deeply respected by our younger students. Being in a multi-age environment has allowed Charlie to show his compassion and authentic respect and care for younger kids. Younger students want to be around him, and they continually seek to emulate the way he works and carries himself..."

In addition to being a great student and an asset to his school, Charlie plays just about every sport under the sun.  He plays Baseball, Lacrosse and Golf all at a high level. 

Park Cottage Grove had a fantastic Squirt A team this year. They won the District 8 regular season championship over much larger programs in Lakeville, Woodbury, Rosemount, and Apple Valley. They finished the season 35-5-1. An amazing record for a team that had no idea how good they would be to start the year. 

The Wolfpack's leader was Joe Palodichuk. Not just in goals and points, but Palodichuk was also a leader in the lockeroom and on the bench. What little we saw of Joe, we were very impressed. Versus Eastview, he had five goals as they won going away and earned PCG the regular season title. 

In their team's final tournament in Fargo, Joe lead his team in scoring with 14 points including scoring all four and a GWG versus Shakopee on Sunday morning, in a 4-3 five OT thriller. 

Outside of hockey, Joe is a great baseball player, last Summer he helped lead his team to a State Championship in 10AAA (note: there are 3 state tournaments in baseball). Joe loves to pitch, but is happy to play anywhere in the field. A straight A student at Grey Cloud Elementary in Cottage Grove, Joe is a leader both in the classroom and in the sports arena. 

One local Squirt Coach said of Palodichuk, "he is the most unselfish goal scorer I've seen in a long time. He will do whatever it takes to help his team win."

The White Bear Lake Bears had an outstanding season going 35-4-1, with three of their four losses coming to Osseo Maple Grove in the Championship games of the three biggest tournaments of the year (YHH Squirtacular, Moose Goheen and Fargo International). The Bears were loaded with top talent. The Lucius Brothers (Chaz and Cruz), the Sweeney Brothers (Ryan and Jack) and Goalie Anton Castro are all special talents.

One of the nominations that stood out more than any that hit our desk was Lleyton Roed.  Roed, a three time Squirt A skater for the Bears excels at all sports he plays (baseball, hockey, and golf). One White Bear parent told me, "whatever sport he plays, he's the best kid on the team..." 

But what stood out most about Lleyton was the passion of which he played the game. He skated hard for every loose puck and he won every battle on all sides of the rink. One coach said of Roed, "hockey would be really easy to coach if they all came to the rink like Lleyton Roed."

A great student at Oneka Elementary in Hugo, Roed is the son of Pete Roed a second round pick of the San Jose Sharks and nephew of former Gopher Shawn Roed.

YHH first saw Jack Smith play two Summers ago...he stood out as a strong player that knew how to get the puck in the net. Over the course of time we saw Jack again last year in the '13 Squirtacular and again this year in the '14 Squirtacular...this year earning All Tournament Team honors. 

A big rugged forward with a blistering shot, Smith and his team amassed a 27-7-4 record this season running roughshod through Central Minnesota's District 5 regular season. What stood out most about Smith and his game was how he got his teammates involved on just about every shift.

Smith, a multi-sport athlete plays Soccer in the Summer (Central MN Youth Soccer) and Football in the Fall (St. Cloud Tech) on top of other interests like hunting and fishing. 

Jack is a straight A student at South Junior High in St. Cloud.

About Wiz Wyatt: Wiz was an All Conference and All Metro hockey player at Minneapolis West High School in 1972, where he also played and lettered a combined 9 times in Football, Hockey and Baseball. In his Senior year, he was named captain of all three teams. He went on to attend Harvard University where he played hockey. In his Junior season, his team lost to the University of Minnesota in the NCAA Final Four. After graduating with Honors and serving as Class Marshall at Harvard, Wiz eventually returned to Minneapolis and was a volunteer coach both as a non-parent and parent in the Minneapolis and Edina youth programs. Wiz lives in Edina with his wife of 30 years Jane, where they raised four children – now adults – Susan, Mary, Mike, and Jessie.